Introducing tâpwêwin media, a new chapter for IndigiNews

Today, IndigiNews is thrilled to share an exciting announcement: as of January 1, we have moved to a new non-profit parent organization, tâpwêwin media. 

tâpwêwin media was created specifically for the purpose of being a new Indigenous-led home for IndigiNews. 

It was founded by publisher Eden Fineday, who will serve as the new organization’s CEO, editor Cara McKenna, who will be tâpwêwin media’s editorial director, and three powerhouse Indigenous journalists who have formed the board: Michelle Cyca, a Cree writer and an editor at The Narwhal; Anna McKenzie, IndigiNews’s former Indigenous child welfare reporter; and kelsie kilawna, one of the founding storytellers of IndigiNews in 2020. 

IndigiNews will continue to operate under the same name, with the same branding and team as before — the only change is the parent company. 

Founded in collaboration with Discourse Media (now Discourse Community Publishing, or DCP) and APTN in 2020, IndigiNews was incubated under DCP for the first few years of its existence. 

“We are incredibly grateful to DCP for all of their guidance and support over the years,” said Fineday. “They helped create something beautiful for Indigenous communities — and then gracefully stepped aside so that Indigenous people could lead it.”

tâpwêwin media is built on the concept of tâpwêwin — a natural law in nehiyaw (Cree) culture that reflects a commitment to truth-telling and integrity in storytelling. This non-profit was created to advance Indigenous storytelling nationally, not just for journalism.

“In the future, we’d love to launch other projects, but for now IndigiNews is our main focus,” said Fineday. “We’d like to be in a position to support other Indigenous storytellers to share their work through mediums other than journalism as well. We hope that tâpwêwin media supports the whole sector.”

Board member kilawna, a syilx storyteller, sees tâpwêwin media as a gift “grounded in the teachings of our lands and the love of our people through stories.”

“This is not another recreation of colonial media — it’s a reflection of who we truly are, told with honour for our Grandmothers and rooted in the protocols our people kept safe for us,” she said.

“Indigenous people are still underrepresented in Canadian media,” added board member Michelle Cyca, “particularly in leadership roles, and it’s still rare for there to be more than one of us in a newsroom — a loneliness that makes this challenging profession even harder.”

She added that tâpwêwin media offers “a journalism model rooted in our values and relationships, one that draws on our collective strength to change how Indigenous stories are told.”

“Every word, every image — every story we tell — is a prayer for our people, our land, our laws, and a celebration of our sacredness,” kilawna said and added her own prayer:

“Let every person who engages with tâpwêwin media feel seen, feel loved, and know they are important to our land and our people.”